Consultant pitches ideas for ‘Destination Leander’

A second go at branding the Leander MetroRail area, planned to one day be an urban, downtown space, may emphasize the city’s “authenticity” and “connection” to downtown Austin, consultants told the City Council on Thursday night.

The aim is to craft a marketing campaign that would entice developers to build in the now-empty 2,300 acres around the rail station. The consultants, who are getting paid up to $54,000, also will create a logo, taglines and a website over the next several weeks.

Council Member David Siebold, the only one to comment at length after a presentation by consultants, said the brand ought to emphasize the singularity of Leander’s transit options, including not just the MetroRail but the 183-A tollway.

“It’s important to take ad- vantage of it now,” Siebold said. “Because eventually, there will be additional service coming in elsewhere, and we will lose that advantage.”

In addition to other key features of Leander’s MetroRail area — that it is the “heart” of downtown and “Texas-style” — consultant Alan Colyer told the council that special emphasis will be put on transit.

“This has never been lost on us,” said Colyer, of M. Arthur Gensler & Associates, which has also branded a development around a rail station in Washington, D.C. “Leander is the only city outside of Austin that has its own rail station.”

Phrases that consultants said could sum up the identity of the MetroRail area include: “Destination Leander,” “Fall in Love with Leander,” “Now Arriving” and “Connected. Convenient. Community.” As part of their research, consultants have met with city officials, as well as local and national developers, since being hired in December.

Naming the area will be put on hold for now, the City Council voted. Siebold noted that council members have struggled to come up with a name that is the obvious choice. A previous consultant pitched the name “Legacy Landing,” but city officials said it was too old-fashioned and suburban sounding.

The branding effort is part of a larger strategy to spur development in the MetroRail area, which has sat vacant since the city’s drive to build a downtown there began 10 years ago, sparking contention between Leander officials and landowners. Leander hired a different set of consultants to revise a 79-page document of property regulations.